The invention relates to a radiator frame for a cooling module of an internal combustion engine, having a fastening element for fastening the cooling module to/on/in a radiator of the internal combustion engine. Furthermore, the invention relates to a cooling module or a cooling device for an internal combustion engine of a motor vehicle, having a radiator frame according to the invention.
A motor vehicle which can be driven by an internal combustion engine has as a rule a water cooling system which guides a cooling water which is heated by the internal combustion engine through a radiator, the cooling water discharging its heat to a cooling air which flows through the radiator. At a standstill and/or at slow speeds of the motor vehicle, a heat build-up occurs in the radiator which is typically arranged in the frontal region of the motor vehicle. In order to avoid a heat build-up of this type, the radiator is as a rule assigned a cooling module which has a fan and serves to additionally convey the cooling air through the radiator. The fan which has a fan motor and a fan wheel is as a rule accommodated on/in a radiator frame behind the radiator in the direction of the vehicle interior of the motor vehicle, which radiator frame is in turn positioned and fastened with regard to the radiator.
The cooling module of the radiator as a rule has a single fan wheel or a plurality of fan wheels, a number, preferably corresponding to the former, of electric motors (fan motors), and the radiator frame. Furthermore, the radiator frame serves to guide the cooling air in as optimum a manner as possible for cooling the radiator and therefore the internal combustion engine and to secure a unit comprising the electric motor or motors and the fan wheel or wheels. A mechanical attachment of the radiator frame and therefore of the cooling module to the radiator or in the vicinity of the radiator of the motor vehicle usually takes place, depending on vehicle type, by means of from at least four to over six fastening elements. That is to say, in a mounted position of the cooling module, from at least four to over six bearing regions are usually formed between the cooling module and the radiator or the motor vehicle.—The fan wheel has a hub which is preferably produced from plastic, a driver which is preferably sintered, and fan blades which are connected, preferably integrally, to the hub on a radial inner side and, likewise preferably integrally, to a fan belt of the fan wheel on a radial outer side. The fan belt of the fan wheel mainly works as a fluid-mechanical seal with respect to the radiator frame.
The fastening elements of the radiator frame serve to suppress the degrees of freedom (translation and rotation in in each case three spatial directions) between the radiator and the radiator frame and therefore the cooling module, or of an attachment of the radiator frame or the cooling module to the motor vehicle. During operation of the motor vehicle, not inconsiderable forces act on the cooling module and therefore on the radiator frame. That is to say, depending on a shaking or vibratory load, different forces and/or moments which change over time act on the fastening elements of the radiator frame. Loads in a y-direction, that is to say a transverse direction of the motor vehicle, and therefore on a fastening element of the radiator frame which locks the cooling module in these directions at least in a single y-direction are to be considered critically, in particular; that is to say, in particular, therefore a fastening element of a locating or fixed bearing between the radiator frame and its mechanical attachment in the motor vehicle. A fracture of the fastening element can occur here.